Vera's Water System

Thank you for your generous gift! This report will introduce you to Vera and her family and the impact you've made in their lives.

Welcome to Northwestern New Mexico, just off of Route 66 near the Continental Divide. Vera and her family call this beautiful place home.

Unlike most families, Vera's has always struggled to get enough clean water to do basic things like take a bath or cook a meal.

But not any more.

All of that changed when you and DIGDEEP brought Vera and her family running water for the first time ever.

We've prepared this report to show you your impact. Let's get started!

Background + Photos

When we imagine life without clean water, we often think of places like Sub-Saharan Africa - communities that barely resemble our own. But at last count, an estimated 1.7 million Americans still don't have clean, running water or a flush toilet at home.

American families without clean water live lives totally different from yours. They wake up and collect water from a source outside their home, fetching it in buckets and boiling it on the stove. When desperate, many haul water from unsafe sources contaminated with bacteria, arsenic or even uranium.

DIGDEEP is the only global water organization working on projects here in the US. We're starting that work on the Navajo Nation. By focusing on low-tech, high-impact solutions, DIGDEEP is making a big impact in this area.

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Check out these photos from the project and keep reading for more information on the technology we used.

You are Awesome

You are awesome. You really, really are.

Thanks for sharing your hard-earned resources with a family in need. No American should live without clean, running water. Your generosity proves that we're all in this together!

Spread the word about your impact! Just copy this link to your report and post it on Facebook or Instagram - or post this photo.

COPY AND PASTE ME >> http://www.digdeepreports.org/vera

Meet Vera

For thirty years Vera lived without running water. Her children and grandchildren have lived their entire lives up until this point without this basic necessity.

Vera's kids, Cassandra (24), Shannada (16), Hixson Jr. (15), as well as her grandkids, Amyra (2) and Autum (1), live with Vera in their joy-filled trailer. They are so excited to see how much easier daily life will be with access to running water. Now that bottled water isn't on their daily shopping list, Vera and her family can save money for other necessities, like the electricity bill.

Vera would like to thank everyone involved in the project She's especially grateful for how it will change the lives of her children and grandchildren.

Map + Data

CHAPTER: BACA/PREWITT CHAPTER, NAVAJO NATION

LOCATION: PREWITT, NEW MEXICO

GPS: N35.362825 E-108.043956

COMPLETED: JANUARY, 2017

TECHNOLOGY: CISTERN

SOURCE: WATER TRUCK

LOCAL ALLY: ST. BONAVENTURE

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We collect a TON of project data; this is just a snapshot.

Every DIGDEEP project uses a Human Rights Based Approach (HRBA) that measures the way water access achieves other key goals like health, gender equity, and access to education.

Every DIGDEEP project is community-led and uses locally-appropriate technology. Benefiting families contribute labor and resources, participate in the installation, and are trained to use and maintain the equipment we install.

The Navajo Water Project

This water system is one small part of the larger Navajo Water Project - a multi-million dollar initiative to bring clean, running water to hundreds of families in Northwest New Mexico.

We're investing in home water systems, solar solutions, water trucking programs and new clean water sources like wells.

Measuring Change

We use 100% of every donation to support to communities in need. The families we serve do their part too, by contributing supplies and labor.

When we work together, we can do amazing things.

The Technology

This project uses cistern and pump technology, a reliable water storage and delivery solution for remote areas.

Water is delivered bi-monthly to a 1200 gallon cistern buried two feet underground. By burying the cistern, water is protected from sunlight, contamination and freezing.

Water is then pumped into the home by a Grundfos pump, through a particulate water filter and into a sink and shower. The system also uses small, in line electric water heaters.

Each cistern system is built with the help of the benefitting family, who are taught to maintain and upgrade their system as needed. The Navajo Water Project uses local labor and sources local parts when available.

Give Again

Now that you've seen the incredible impact your gift can have, why not give again?

It costs $14 a month to deliver water to this house. And there are hundreds of families like this one waiting for a water system of their own.